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Loyalty Binds Me is the second book about Richard III in the 21st-century by award winning author, Joan Szechtman. It begins about a year after the first book of the series This Time ends. Richard has married a divorcee, adopted her two daughters, and with the help of his new wife, rescued his son Edward, who had predeceased him in the 15th-century. Richard has lived in the twenty-first century for two years, and his son has been with him for the past year. At the start of the novel, they have just arrived in London, when Richard is brought in by the Metropolitan Police for questioning about the alleged murder of Richard III's nephews in 1483. Richard must now find a way to clear his name and protect his family while concealing his true identity.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"... Loyalty Binds Me is a unique novel that spins into a Richard the III alive in the twenty-first century. ... With a five hundred year old murder mystery turning hot again, Loyalty Binds Me is a highly unique twist on historical fiction and mystery, recommended."--Midwest Small Press Book Reviews, September, 2011

From the Back Cover

"Loyalty Binds Me, the second of Joan Szechtman's series of novels about Richard III in the 21st Century, brings Richard "home" to England where his past catches up with him and her has to go on the run from the British authorities. Having established himself with his new-and partly old-family, he faces losing everything again."Following on seamlessly from This Time, Loyalty Binds Me shows Richard III in a fresh, unexpected and very human light. A must read..."--Brian Wainwright, author of "Within the Fetterlock" and "The Adventures of Alianore Audley."

"Fun with Richard III never stops! Joan Szechtman's latest novel, Loyalty Binds Me, brings King Richard III to 21st century Portland, Oregon, via time machine travel. But Richard Gloucestre (the name on his passport) longs to visit his 15th century home, a trip interrupted by the London police, M15, the American FBI, and the inevitable tabloid reporter--all suspicious of his name, his identity, and his intent regarding the current monarchy."Szechtman's solid historical research and skillful writing make Loyalty Binds Me a welcome addition to novels about the endlessly engrossing Wars of the Roses."--Arlene Okerlund, author of the historical biographies "Elizabeth: England's Slandered Queen" and "Elizabeth of York."

Top customer reviews

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Although the first book in the series was enjoyable, its plot seems like a pleasant ride compared to this one, which is more like a runaway train. The characters are of course familiar from the previous book, so the author jumps right into the riveting story. No spoilers here as I wouldn't want to spoil the fun. And it is fun!

Having an interest in Richard III and having enjoyed the previous book in the proposed trilogy I bought this book with great anticipation. I enjoyed it, but found some of it did not keep my attention as much as the first. That may have been related to my circumstances rather than the writing of the book.Again I loved the style of writing and found that I wanted the best for the main characters. The book involves a the chase between Richard and another person who wants to do him in, action at Bosworth.Worth reading for the fun, and the information you will gain into alternative possibilities with regards his nephews and the mystery of their deaths.

I am looking forward to the third book in the series being completed, to see where the blended family gets to, how Edward copes and develops further.

Like the first novel I couldn't stop before I was completely finished. Also like the first novel I felt that the story could be fleshed out more although the action sequences were especially riveting. It was slightly disconcerting that the author "Americanized" King Richard and stripped him of so much of his original persona that he's practically unrecognizable.

Reading this novel was like being on a roller coaster. I willingly suspended my disbelief and enjoyed the ride. I'm afraid to write much more or risk spoilers. It's not the best novel I ever read or even the best novel about Richard III but I had a lot of fun reading it and I can certainly recommend it as light reading. Loyalty Binds Me

This novel is a vehicle for Joan Szechtman to present the case for Richard III against the charge that he murdered his nephews.Joans speculative but plausible arguments are woven into a story of a family under attack.Richard and his modern wife face medical crisis, separation, suspicions in laws and reaching out to step children.All the while, under threat from MI5 and the FBI.Like most parents they can get it wrong, while trying to the right thing.Will their love for each other and the children, their loyalty, be enough to win the day.?

As a side note, I like the way Joan has resisted the temptation to treat the time travel technology as all powerful.Love the frustrated Sarah explaining it to the bureaucrats."No, you won't be able to do that.""That's not how it works.""Try that and you will die."

_Loyalty Binds Me_, second in a projected trilogy concerning Richard III, the medieval monarch of the "Princes in the Tower" tradition, takes on a huge task. Many readers will be familiar with the last Plantagenet king's travel to present-day in the first installment, _This Time_, and speculative fiction fans (and others) will revel in such a journey. However, when Richard finds himself now under arrest for the murders of his nephews--which, mind you, happened some 500 years ago, and there exist contradictions to this charge--he experiences firsthand effects of the success the Tudors, Shakespeare and others have had in blackening his reputation. But how, readers may ask, does the author manage to overcome the label of absurdity; will enough modern lawmen actually believe this is Richard III come to this era, and are willing to risk their careers on such a prosecution? How can this be portrayed?

Worry not, readers, for Joan Szechtman not only manages all this heavy lifting, but also does it with the mark of a brilliant writer: by making it look easy. The flow of the book is so smooth, that when I read certain parts I actually gasped at the ups and downs Szechtman took me through with Richard. So thrilling are those danger moments, I found myself mentally shaking my fist at the need to sleep; I simply had to keep reading and find out what happens next.

One of the ways I can think of that helps the author achieve this is her understanding of today's society. Unlike most people in Richard's time, our society has been through so much with technology that even those who scoff at the idea of time travel still often contemplate it with a fair degree of seriousness. Coupled with the viable descriptions and scientific explanations through the book, many doubters will do a double take at the possibilities. Then there's the government. Oh yes, they want a piece of the pie, and that, paired with the widespread belief that governments already know more than they are telling, clicks it all into place.

Ms. Szechtman also brings to bear the unfortunate understanding we all have of post-9/11 policing. When Richard's tormentors are unable to move in the direction they wish, they play the terrorism card, using that to threaten him with indefinite detention. If that doesn't strike fear into the hearts of readers today, it at least erases the sometimes smug sureness that we have progressed as much as we think, in terms of governance and liberty, from the days when Richard sought to bestow greater rights on those accused of crimes. It is sadly ironic that this king now falls victim to abuse of power that can cause someone simply to disappear. What grows from this is that where once there was care for a character, now there is great concern for the peril he is in.

Through all of this, the author allows us to peek into the lives of Richard's modern-day family, his new wife and her two daughters he has adopted, as well as his beloved son Edward, whose resilience for the new world he is in is fairly strong--witness his grasp of technology, for example. But Edward, who woke from death to find his mother taken from him, speaks to us of how childhood, despite how overhauls, trends and social structures have changed it over the centuries, remains the same. Children are strong but vulnerable, astoundingly bright though need help navigating through even some of the briefest of situations and, perhaps most heartbreaking, love so strongly and want to please, yet withhold as a form of protection. They show us that we adults are given responsibility that is almost frightening in its ability to impact. Yet with brilliant economy Szechtman portrays all this in those peeks we are allowed, and we witness a family coming to terms with the usual trials all families must go through, as well as those of a father who has been arrested, and the merging of medieval and modern times--a blended family like no other.

This is by no means an exhaustive review of everything wonderful in Joan Szechtman's latest book, but it does point the way to the other two, one as yet unpublished, for this book is not easily put down and forgotten. For those who already care about Richard, it will be a reader's delight. Others who are new to the king, or willing to re-consider what exactly constitutes "common knowledge," will find a wealth of historically accurate information as well as recognizable background details in order to do. Moreover, because the second book is written to be enjoyed independently, reading it first will not involve any guessing at the start. But Joan Szechtman's _Loyalty Binds Me_ will make you want to go back for more.